WASHINGTON, D.C. - U.S. Sen. Pat Toomey, R-Pa., has asked IRS Commissioner Douglas Shulman to explain how the department is addressing a form of tax fraud found across Pennsylvania.

In a recent letter to Shulman, Toomey said Pennsylvania law enforcement officials contacted him about a new trend in tax fraud.

"They have noticed a disturbing trend whereby fraudulent tax returns are being filed using legitimate Social Security numbers in order to generate improper tax refunds," Toomey wrote. "Clearly, any kind of tax fraud is a waste of taxpayer dollars and therefore must be stopped."

Toomey said he hoped that existing technology can be used to verify forms quickly and accurately.

District attorneys across southeastern Pennsylvania thanked Sen. Toomey for his efforts to curb this tax fraud:

-- "Law enforcement officers and crime victims in Montgomery County have been frustrated by the utter failure of the IRS to investigate reports of criminal activity or to share information with local police which would allow them to investigate, arrest, and prosecute offenders," Montgomery County District Attorney Risa Vetri Ferman said. "In far too many cases, the IRS has failed to act upon reports of criminal identity theft, leaving victims to bear the consequences of crimes committed against them and allowing scam artists and crooks to steal our tax dollars."

-- "Pennsylvania prosecutors support Sen. Toomey's efforts to focus the IRS on this type of tax fraud, which costs our municipalities and our state millions," said Adams County District Attorney Shawn Wagner, president of the Pennsylvania District Attorneys Association.

-- "Based upon intelligence gathered by local law enforcement agencies in Berks County, tax fraud has become the single most profitable scam taking place in our jurisdiction," Berks County District Attorney John Adams said.